Whether we want to lose weight or we just want to live a healthy lifestyle to prevent acquiring deadly diseases, we often hear from lifestyle nutritionist to always eat fruits and especially, vegetables. These medical professionals will reiterate the importance of eating vegetables because it’s our nutritional powerhouse. It’s where we get most of the nutrients our body needs. These nutrients are needed in order for our body to become stronger and to boost our immune system. What’s great about eating vegetables is that you can eat them as long as you want.

You don’t have to worry about gaining weight since vegetables are packed with fiber so you won’t be gaining fats from it. Moreover, the fibers will help you feel full, thus lessening your cravings while regulating your blood sugar levels. If there’s a miracle food you’re looking for, then we can safely say it is vegetables. However, with tons of food manufacturers trying to alter the natural components of vegetables in order to fasten their growth and production, we cannot be sure if it’s still safe and nutritious to eat vegetables, especially now that more companies are recalling vegetables for potential listeria contamination.

What is Listeria Contamination?

Before we get to the recall alert, let us tackle first what listeria contamination is all about. For those who don’t know, listeria contamination is a food-borne disease usually carried by the bacteria called listeriosis. Once consumed, the listeria can invade your body and attack your gastrointestinal tract. After that, the listeria will travel through your bloodstream and it may even produce toxins to damage your cells. The problem can even elevate by attacking your central nervous system which triggers meningitis and/or encephalitis (or brain infection). For pregnant women, the infection can lead to spontaneous abortion, stillbirth, or sepsis during infancy.

Pregnant women are at risks of Listeria contamination.

Around 2,500 cases of listeriosis are observed and reported in the United States every year. And about 200 in every 1000 cases lead to death. The groups of people vulnerable to the disease are pregnant women and people with autoimmune diseases. Even if this disease can be treated when diagnosed early, it still remains as an imminent threat to the public health because of the complications you might suffer if you get infected. That’s why the Health and Human Services and FDA are on constant monitoring to prevent the contamination of such disease.

Trader’s Joe, Walmart, and other Companies Recall Vegetable Due to Possible Listeria Contamination

FDA issues recall alert for vegetable for possible Listeria Contamination.

Just this week, the FDA had issued a recall alert for all the vegetables with the best buy mark between October 11, 2017, and October 20, 2017, after the test resulted positive with the presence of Listeria monocytogenes during an inspection.  This prompts large food companies such as Trader’s Joe, and Walmart to pull out their vegetable products and conduct an inspection in order to determine whether or not their vegetable products got infected too. And today, Business Insider reported that a major vegetable supplier, Mann Packing has issued a recall of its vegetable products to leading grocery stores, including TJ, Walmart, Whole Foods, and Meijer, all across the United States and Canada.

The affected products include those fresh foods like broccoli florets, shaved brussels sprouts, cauliflower florets, and vegetable party trays. Let us hear the official statement from Mann’s Director of Marketing.

“We understand these recalls are concerning for consumers, but I want you to know that this action was taken because your health and safety is our highest priority,” Gina Nucci said.

Specific vegetable products and meals recalled by Trader’s Joe and Walmart.

Even if there have been no reported cases of infections or illnesses as a result of the recall, the Mann’s Packing took the initiative “out of an abundance of caution”. The Mann Packing company also reassures their customers that they can return their products for a full refund. You can contact their consumer line 888-470-2681  for any inquiries or concerns. For those who wanted to know the specific vegetable products recalled by the FDA, here is the full list below:

• Meijer has recalled more than 30 vegetable products purchased between Sept. 27 and Oct. 20 in Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, and Wisconsin.
• A variety of vegetables from brands like Trader Joe’s, Archer Farms, Mann’s Family Favorites and Walmart, HEB, have been recalled.